Suburban officer charged with domestic battery



April 24, 2013 (EAST DUNDEE, Ill.) (WLS) -- East Dundee Sgt. Michael Seyller has been charged with domestic battery after allegedly hitting his girlfriend on the head and in the face early Wednesday morning.
On April 9, Sgt. Seyller was charged with aggravated unlawful use of a firearm after he walked outside his home with a shotgun on April 6 after calling police for a noise complaint.
Seyller is scheduled to appear in court Thursday on both charges

Cop held a knife to his wife’s neck during an argument


Washington Co, Pennsylvania: A state trooper is facing charges after police said he held a knife to his wife’s neck during an argument at their home. Authorities said he is suspended without pay following the alleged incident. ow.ly/kkZ1T

domestic battery.


Orange County, Florida: A sheriff’s deputy was arrested on charges of domestic battery. Officers said they observed him scream obscenities and push a woman while they were facing each other. http://ow.ly/kjeXw


Twin Falls County, Idaho: A deputy has been arrested on charges of felony domestic battery. He was arraigned on three counts, including inflicting traumatic injury. http://ow.ly/kioGh

ex-girlfriend with a “SWAT-like” raid of her home


San Diego County, California: The County and a detective might be liable for using excessive force and conspiring against a deputy’s ex-girlfriend with a “SWAT-like” raid of her home. On the claim, the court said the force used was “clearly intimidating.” It concluded that the girlfriend is entitled to a trial to prove her claim that the “raid” tactics were used to gain the upper hand in custody mediation. ow.ly/k9fzV

A woman who was shot five times


Escambia County, Florida: A woman who was shot five times by deputies is now suing the sheriff and four deputies. She was taken hostage in her home by a former boyfriend, and was being used by him as a shield when deputies opened fire. The shooting was ruled as justified by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the State Attorney. ow.ly/k7vt1

having an inappropriate relationship


Denver, Colorado: Another police officer is accused of having an inappropriate relationship with a domestic-violence victim has resigned. The 14-year-veteran skirted potential discipline by resigning. ow.ly/k7f9V

The police chief pleaded guilty to abusing


Merryville, Louisiana: The police chief pleaded guilty to abusing his office by falsifying arrest documents after going to Texas to find drugs on a woman whom he had released after a traffic stop. He was given a suspended three-year prison term, 60 days in jail, three years probation and $1,500 in fines. ow.ly/k7e0n

A now-former state trooper


Update: Atlanta, Georgia (First reported 02-28-13): A now-former state trooper accused in a crash that killed a woman has pleaded guilty to vehicular homicide and reckless driving. Officials say he failed to use due regard when traveling through an intersection before the accident. ow.ly/k73lA

A one-armed woman has filed a federal lawsuit


Key West, Florida: A one-armed woman has filed a federal lawsuit against a police officer and the city. The suit claims that excessive force was sued against her when she was arrested. The officer says that she kicked at his groin repeatedly when he went to handcuff her, and she accuses him of slamming her into a patrol car for asking him a question. ow.ly/k4Xxl

A police officer arrested on



Update: Pawtucket, Rhode Island (First reported: 03-21-13): A police officer arrested on domestic abuse charges has pleaded no contest to one count in the case. If he stays out of trouble for a year the charge will be removed from his record. ow.ly/jYbC5

A sheriff’s deputy has been suspended


Cabell County, West Virginia: A sheriff’s deputy has been suspended with pay while investigators look into a domestic violence allegation. ow.ly/jWzRQ

state trooper faces assault charges


Highland, New York: A state trooper faces assault charges after what police described as a domestic incident. Police say that a female victim reported that she suffered a nasal fracture during a dispute. ow.ly/jWw2k

Former Martinsville police officer charged with shooting woman



James Scott Witherow has been charged with malicious wounding in a shooting that happened Sunday.
A former Martinsville City Police officer has been charged with shooting a woman Sunday at an apartment complex.
James Scott Witherow has been charged with malicious wounding. He is being held on a $5,000 secured bond in the Martinsville City Jail.
Witherow is accused of shooting a woman around 3 p.m. Sunday at the Avalon Arms Apartment Complex in Martinsville. The victim was airlifted to Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital. It’s not clear how badly she was hurt.
Because the suspect is a former member of the Martinsville Police Department, the investigation is being handled by Virginia State Police. Also, Pittsylvania County Commonwealth’s Attorney David Grimes has been requested to serve as special prosecutor.

Fairfax County Cop Convicted of Forcibly Sodomizing Ex-Girlfriend





A Prince William County jury recommended Thursday that James Craig Summers, a former Fairfax County police officer, be sentenced to 7 years in prison.
A former Fairfax County police officer was convicted Thursday in Prince William County Circuit Court of forcibly sodomizing his ex-girlfriend in 2009.
James Craig Summers, 56, a Burke resident who served with the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department for 30 years before he became a police officer, was found guilty on the third day of a jury trial. Summers was arrested in May 2012.
The victim told the court that, in one incident while she was dating Summers, he grabbed her arm, twisted it around her back, handcuffed her and then forcibly anally sodomized her—despite her pleas for him to stop.
After deliberating for several hours Wednesday afternoon and part of Thursday morning, the five men and seven women recommended that Summers serve a seven-year sentence. A judge will make the final decision when Summers is sentenced on Aug. 2.
In a case lacking any physical evidence, the verdict largely depended on the testimony of the victim. Prosecutor Kristina Robinson urged the jury to consider who was the more credible witness, then characterized Summers as "a manipulative personality" who had multiple affairs both before and after the relationship ended.
"He hasn't changed. James Summers is who James Summers is. He's a liar. He's a cheat. And you can't believe a word he says," Robinson said.
Summers admitted the affairs, but denied hurting the victim. In closing arguments, the defense tried to paint a portrait of the ex-girlfriend as a jilted lover, who was bent on getting back at Summers for the shabby way he treated her.
"I would never do something like that—violence on another human being," Summers said.
The victim said that she had not reported the information for two and a half years largely out of fear that Summers would retaliate.

Police officer charged woman after rejection



A Columbus police officer is on desk duty while his conduct after a November traffic stop is investigated.
Officer Chris O’Neall had his badge and gun taken on April 5 after the Division of Police received information that he might have had an inappropriate relationship with Cecily Ferris, whom he stopped on Nov. 24 on I-71 near E. Main Street, said Sgt. Rich Weiner, a division spokesman.

O’Neall waited more than four months before charging her with operating a vehicle while impaired and failing to drive within lanes. O’Neall, 34, has been a Columbus police officer for five years and had been assigned to patrol.

After stopping Ferris, O’Neall gave her a breath test and took her to a hospital for a blood test, her attorney, Joseph Landusky, said. Because her car had been towed, O’Neall drove her in his squad car to her German Village house.
Ferris phoned the police dispatcher to express her thanks to O’Neall, her attorney said. O’N eall and Ferris then exchanged about 200 text messages over subsequent weeks.
Landusky characterized the messages by O’Neall as flirting. One of his messages was, “You’re kind of hot,” he said. O’Neall also said in other messages that he was single and lonely, Landusky said.
But then Ferris received a phone call from O’Neall’s wife, who said he was married and accused her of having an affair with him, Landusky said. Ferris texted O’Neall not to contact her again. O’Neall received the blood-test results on Jan. 15 but didn’t file charges against Ferris in Franklin County Municipal Court until March 28. Landusky said the blood test showed she had no alcohol in her system, only prescribed medication.
Ferris did not complain to police about O’Neall’s conduct, Landusky said. “She’s not interested in doing anything to harm this guy. But she didn’t think she should be charged.”
Weiner would not say what led the division to investigate O’Neall.
“Because of the position of power he holds,” Weiner said, “we have to look at it to see if there’s any abuse of that power.”



Four officers suspended in fallout of officer's misconduct plea, sources say



Brenda Brown was arrested for marijuana possession, but the arresting Baltimore police officer has pleaded guilty to charges he falsified information and made illegal arrests.
Four Baltimore police officers have been suspended as part of an investigation stemming from the conviction of an officer for conspiring with a drug informant to orchestrate arrests, according to sources with knowledge of the case.
Anthony Guglielmi, the agency's chief spokesman, confirmed that the four officers were suspended from the Northwest District, where Richburg had worked in a special plainclothes unit. He declined to identify the officers or say why they were suspended.
"This is part of the commissioner's plan to root out corruption and get ahead of inappropriate, unethical behavior," Guglielmi said. "These officers were identified as part of an internal investigation and suspended."
Sources said the suspensions were part of the fallout after Detective Kendell Richburg pleaded guilty in federal court last month to an armed drug conspiracy charge. Police and prosecutors said he conspired with a drug informant to support the informant's drug dealing and raise the number of arrests he made.
Richburg, 36, faces a minimum sentence of 10 years and a maximum of life in prison at his sentencing in June.
U.S. Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein told The Baltimore Sun last week that the Richburg case was continuing.
"There is an ongoing federal criminal investigation as a result of evidence gathered during the wiretap investigation. I cannot comment about who may or may not be a suspect," Rosenstein said in an email.
Richburg's attorney, Warren Brown, said after his client's guilty plea that pressure to make arrests permeates the department and led to his client's criminal conduct.
"I listened to hundreds of hours of wiretapped conversations in the case," said Brown. "And I can tell you that if the curtain was pulled back, you would see that his M.O. was standard operating procedure. That's the way a lot of them work, because they're being judged by those numbers."
Police dismissed that allegation and said Richburg had only himself to blame for his conduct.
Rosenstein said federal prosecutors have met with city prosecutors about a handful of cases connected to the Richburg investigation in which they believe false police reports led to criminal charges. City prosecutors are reviewing the cases to determine whether they should proceed.
The Sun reported last month on the case of Brenda Brown, a 52-year-old who said she was arrested after buying three small bags of marijuana at a bus stop in September 2012.
In Richburg's plea, he said that he had instructed his informant to sell drugs to Brown so that he could arrest her, and he wrote in charging documents that he witnessed the sale even though he did not. Brown pleaded guilty and received a sentence including a year of probation, court costs, counseling and drug testing.
The Northwest District has been under fire in recent years, with the convictions of Officer Daniel Redd, who dealt drugs while on the job, and Richburg. Richburg worked in the Violent Crimes Impact Section, a unit lauded by police commanders for its work in high-crime areas but which has seen several officers accused of misconduct in recent years.
Police Commissioner Anthony W. Batts reduced the number of officers in the unit, renamed it the Zone Enforcement Section, and put it under the control of the patrol division.
Grayling Williams, the Police Department's internal affairs chief, said his office investigated the Richburg case in conjunction with the FBI. Last week, Williams informed the department that he was leaving to take a job with the Pennsylvania attorney general's office.
He declined to comment on the recent suspensions and developments in the case. But in an interview about his 16 months in Baltimore, he said the agency is working hard to investigate misconduct. Despite spending his time focused on bad cops, he said, he leaves with a good impression of the department.
"This department is serious about dealing with misconduct and integrity issues," Williams said. "It's just a matter of dealing with the few bad apples that are in this department. But the department itself really should not be painted as a department full of bad apples."
Referring to Richburg, he said, "Every officer is not that way."
Baltimore Sun reporter Justin George contributed to this article.

A former sergeant was accused of sexually assaulting a woman during a traffic stop in October.



City officials wouldn't confirm the name of the sergeant or the allegation. They did say an administrative investigation was concluded and that the sergeant is no longer with the police department. Citing privacy laws, they didn't say if he was fired or if he quit.
Irwindale police also asked the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department to investigate.
Another officer was also placed on administrative leave after he was accused of having inappropriate relationships with Explorer Scouts. As with the former sergeant, police launched an internal probe and asked the sheriff's department to do an investigation on the allegation. 

A state trooper faces assault charges after what police described as


Highland, New York: A state trooper faces assault charges after what police described as a domestic incident. Police say that a female victim reported that she suffered a nasal fracture during a dispute. ow.ly/jWw2k

A state trooper faces assault charges after what police described as


Highland, New York: A state trooper faces assault charges after what police described as a domestic incident. Police say that a female victim reported that she suffered a nasal fracture during a dispute. ow.ly/jWw2k

A sheriff’s deputy has been suspended


Cabell County, West Virginia: A sheriff’s deputy has been suspended with pay while investigators look into a domestic violence allegation. ow.ly/jWzRQ

Cop who shot wife while on duty sentenced to 17 years in prison




FAIRFIELD COUNTY, SC (WIS) -
A former Winnsboro police officer who shot his estranged wife while on duty in 2012 has been sentenced to 17 years in prison. Michael Roseboro on Thursday pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of assault and battery of a high and aggravated nature. He was originally charged with attempted murder.
Roseboro shot his estranged wife in Winnsboro and then disappeared in his patrol vehicle for five days in November of 2012. As authorities were taking him into custody at a church camp in Great Falls, he shot himself in the chest.
Before his employment with the Winnsboro Department of Public Safety, Roseboro worked for the Fairfield County Sheriff's Department for ten years. He was fired for lying to county officials about the sale of a fire department pumper truck. Prosecutors said the maximum sentence Roseboro faced was 20 years in prison

Suspended Pawtucket officer pleads no contest in domestic assault case, gets community service


PROVIDENCE, Rhode Island — A suspended Pawtucket police officer has been sentenced to anger management and 20 hours of community service in a domestic abuse case. WJAR-TV reports (http://bit.ly/10WrQgv ) that Officer Stephen Ricco pleaded no contest to disorderly conduct Wednesday in Providence District Court. He also was ordered to pay more than $90 in court costs. Simple assault and other disorderly conduct charges were dismissed.
The disorderly conduct conviction will be erased from his record if he stays out of trouble for a year. Ricco was arrested in February. His ex-girlfriend told police she was pregnant with his child when he assaulted her for refusing to get an abortion. She also said Ricco told her to kill him with his service weapons. Ricco remains suspended with pay pending a police internal affairs investigation.

A police officer has been sentenced to house arrest and probation


Meridian, Mississippi: A police officer has been sentenced to house arrest and probation after being convicted of forging a subpoena, while employed as a police officer, to obtain his wife’s phone records. He was given one year house arrest followed by five years probation. ow.ly/jFkUM

Ronald DePellegrin Accepts Oral Sex From Alleged Prostitute Diana Gross Before Arresting Her




Look out, the cop is coming!

The lawyer for an alleged Pennsylvania prostitute says the undercover detective who arrested her got a little too invested in his cover, the Associated Press reported.
Homestead Officer Ronald DePellegrin, 48, admits that he allowed Diana Gross, 26, to give him oral sex before he informed her that he was actually a cop, according to the criminal complaint written by DePellegrin and obtained by The Smoking Gun.
DePellegrin says on March 22, he contacted Gross, who went by the name "Beckie Dymon" through the website Pittsburgh Backpage, where she was allegedly advertising herself as available for sex.
The report states that Gross and DePellegrin agreed to on a rate of $145 for a half hour and meet at a house in Homestead later that day. There, he says he assured her he was not a cop before she grabbed his groin and got naked. Then, the report states:
I disrobed and Beckie took a condom and placed it on me. Beckie started to perform oral sex on me when I said oh shit the cops were coming. Beckie stopped performing the act and looked out the window. I removed the condom and quickly dressed. I told Beckie I was a [Homestead detective] and she was under arrest.
Gross' attorney, Michael Waltman, says DePellegrin's conduct is unacceptable.
"One of the key issues," Waltman told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, "is that the police in this particular instance are engaging in the exact type of criminal activity that they're saying that they're trying to protect the community from."
Mike Manko, spokesman for the district attorney's office, told the Post-Gazette that the DA Office has decided that DePellegrin's behavior does not "create a constitutional issue that would bar us from moving forward with the prosecution [of Gross]."

The Wisconsin Attorney General has charged a cop


Burnett County, Wisconsin: The Wisconsin Attorney General has charged a cop with disorderly conduct for an argument with his girlfriend. The deputy’s conduct has sparked an investigation into a cover-up inside the sheriff’s office. ow.ly/jty5h

A sheriff’s office captain pleaded guilty in federal court


Update: Murray County, Tennessee (First reported 09-04-12): A sheriff’s office captain pleaded guilty in federal court for his role in setting up for arrest a woman who had complained about sexual advances by a local judge. The case involved planting drugs into the woman’s car. ow.ly/jy7I2

A cop who was accused of assault


Clinton, Maine: A cop who was accused of assault and was fired for conduct unbecoming a sheriff’s deputy. He was charged with assault and domestic assault. ow.ly/jxOVO

A state police trooper has been charged with unlawfully


West Pittston, Pennsylvania: A state police trooper has been charged with unlawfully accessing her then-boyfriend’s cellphone account and filing a false report that he assaulted her. ow.ly/jxO6Z

Cop Scott Francis, under investigation by the town and state, faces charges for domestic violence assault.




By MATT HONGOLTZ-HETLING Morning Sentinel

The Clinton police cop who was accused of assault this week was fired from a position as a Washington County deputy in 2010 for conduct unbecoming a sheriff's deputy.
In addition to a criminal investigation, Cop Scott Francis, 37, of Winslow is being investigated by the town and the state, officials said Thursday. Winslow police charged Francis with assault and domestic assault Wednesday in connection with an incident on Monday evening.
Clinton's police chief said he was aware that Francis had been terminated in 2010, but it didn't disqualify him from the position with the department, because a state board dismissed the case against Francis and his background check was good.
Police have declined to release the details of the Monday evening incident. Under Maine law, assault happens when a person "intentionally, knowingly or recklessly causes bodily injury or offensive physical contact to another person."
Domestic-violence assault is the same, except that it is committed against a member of the person's household or family. Both are punishable by up to 364 days incarceration and a $2,000 fine.
In a written report from 2010, Washington County Sheriff Donnie Smith said Francis was put on paid administrative leave on Feb. 10 after being served with a temporary order of protection on behalf of his estranged wife.
About two weeks after Francis was put on leave, county commissioners voted to uphold Smith's recommendation to fire Francis for "conduct unbecoming an cop."
The sheriff's actions triggered a February 2010 state investigation into Francis' certification as a law enforcement official, according to John Rogers, director of the Maine Criminal Justice Academy. Three months later, the academy board's complaint committee dismissed the case and recommended no further action, Rogers said.
"That means they couldn't prove the crime," Rogers said Thursday.
The state's ruling gave Clinton Police Chief Craig Johnson the confidence to hire Francis, Johnson said Thursday. "His background check came out favorably," Johnson said.
Now Francis faces parallel investigations as the town, the state licensing board and the criminal justice system weigh the evidence to decide what, if any, penalty is appropriate.
Johnson said the town could determine that no action is needed or it could take a wide range of disciplinary actions
Rogers said the complaint committee will handle the current certification case against Francis, one of 20 filed against law enforcement cops statewide so far this year, using the same process that was used in 2010.
The three-member committee includes a citizen without law enforcement experience. Rogers said the committee will gather evidence and make a recommendation that could include revocation of Francis' certification.
Francis' case is unusual because he has been out on workers' compensation for about two weeks, Clinton Town Manager Warren Hatch said.
Ordinarily, a town employee can be suspended without pay, Hatch said. In this case, Francis is being paid by the Maine Workers' Compensation Board, not the town, Hatch said.
That means that his paychecks are dependent on his ability to work, not the outcome of the town's investigation, said Paul Sighinolfi, executive director of the compensation board.

Pa. police: Ex-trooper kills wife, self in market




A former state trooper killed his estranged wife with a shotgun inside a central Pennsylvania supermarket Thursday and then killed himself, days after she filed for divorce and two months after he was accused of beating her, police said.
Mark A. Miscavish, who retired from the state police in 2011 after 15 years, killed Traci Miscavish at around 10 a.m. at the County Market in Philipsburg where she worked, authorities said. Police also spelled her first name Tracie.
He was arrested Jan. 23 after Traci Miscavish, who had recently left him, returned to the home to retrieve some belongings, Centre County District Attorney Stacy Parks Miller said.
Traci Miscavish believed her husband had been abusing prescription drugs and when she went to take them away, he wrestled her to the ground, pinned her arms behind her and attempted to bind her with duct tape, said Parks Miller, whose office was prosecuting him.
He pulled out a gun , a police affidavit said he did not point it at her , and threatened to kill her, but a passer-by saw him trying to drag her back into the home and stopped to help, Parks Miller said. He was charged with simple assault, terroristic threats and harassment and spent a week in jail before being bailed out.
Parks Miller said Traci Miscavish lived in fear of her 51-year-old estranged husband and told prosecutors she believed he would harm her further.
"She said, `The next time I see him is going to be at the end of a gun,'" Parks Miller told The Associated Press. "We were very concerned when he got out and we're just devastated now."
Mark Miscavish's defense attorney, David Charles Mason, was not available for comment, his office said.
Traci Miscavish filed for divorce within the past week.
Her sister Gina March, speaking to reporters outside the supermarket after the shooting, said the system had failed both her sister and her brother-in-law.
"He wasn't in his right mind," March said. "I don't believe he's at fault, I believe he needed help. ... And nobody was there to help him, not the judge, not the cops, not our system."
State police planned an afternoon news conference to discuss the case.
Christina Price, who said she works at a liquor store in the same strip mall as the supermarket, told the Centre Daily Times that Traci Miscavish was a cheerful woman and so friendly and happy that "you couldn't imagine there was stuff going on at home."
Price told the newspaper she had no idea the woman had a protection order against her husband.
"Would it have stopped this?" she asked. "It's like, how do you get out alive? When you've got kids and grandkids and friends and family, how do you split it and get away?"

ST. LOUIS POLICE COP CHARGED WITH DOMESTIC ASSAULT



St. Louis police
Matthew Schanz, a St. Louis police cop for three years, was suspended and criminally charged with domestic assault and resisting arrest after police say he assaulted his boyfriend on March 10, 2013.
Matthew Schanz, a St. Louis police cop for three years, was suspended and criminally charged with domestic assault and resisting arrest after police say he assaulted his boyfriend on March 10, 2013.
UPDATED at 3:30 p.m. with comments from police chief
ST. LOUIS • A police cop has been suspended and criminally charged with domestic assault and resisting arrest after police say he assaulted his boyfriend.
Matthew Schanz, 26 and a three-year veteran of the force, was charged today with two counts of second-degree domestic assault and one count of resisting/interfering with arrest.
The alleged incident occurred while Schanz was off-duty at about 1:15 a.m. on March 10 along the 4600 block of South Spring Avenue. Police say Schanz and the victim, a 25-year-old man, had argued at another location before returning to the home, which led to a physical altercation. The victim sustained injuries to his foot, back and head, police said.
Court documents allege that Schanz choked the victim and struck the victim's head against a bathroom wall, causing an injury that required stitches.
Schanz then left the home and the victim called police. Emergency workers arrived and took the victim to a hospital for treatment, police said.
Schanz fled from cops who went to his home, and continued to drive after one of his fellow cops activated his lights while driving behind him, court documents allege. He eventually pulled over.
Responding cops did not take a report at the scene, but a report was generated two days later, after the victim reported the incident at police headquarters, said Chief Sam Dotson.
Along with investigating Schanz's actions, the department's Internal Affairs Division is investigating the sergeant who initially responded to the scene, whose cops did not take a report, Dotson said.
"Anytime we believe a crime has been committed, we have an obligation to take a report and take action," Dotson said.
Dotson said the department takes domestic violence incidents "very seriously," and pointed to a specialized Domestic Violence Unit within the department as well as several partnerships with agencies throughout the city that assist victims.
"Whether an incident involves one of our cops or someone in public, we have an obligation and a duty to conduct a thorough investigation and make sure the needs of victims are addressed," Dotson said. "The cops that night didn't avail the victim to any of these things and I expect more."
Schanz was arrested March 12 and released about 24 hours later. He was placed on administrative duty while charges were pending against him at the Circuit Attorney's Office. Once charges were issued today, Schanz was suspended without pay, police said.
Schanz's attorney, John Bouhasin, said his client had begun seeing the alleged victim just weeks before the incident. Schanz sought an order of protection against the man.
"The allegations by the victim in this case are absolutely false," Bouhasin said. "Any actions Matt took were to protect himself and defend himself and in no way did my client strike this victim. While my client was trying to get away from this individual, this individual fell and struck his head on the wall."
Bouhasin characterized Schanz as a "decorated cop" who spent time working as a border control agent and for the FBI.
"He's not an aggressive individual," Bouhasin said of his client.
During his time with the department, Schanz served in the sixth district and at the police academy.

St. Louis Police Cop Allegedly Beat Boyfriend During Dispute




ST. LOUIS, MO. (KTVI) – A St. Louis police cop, accused of beating his boyfriend-domestic partner, was suspended and jailed, Tuesday. Cop Matthew Schanz, 26, a 3-year veteran patrol cop, is charged with 2 counts of domestic assault, felonies. He`s also charged with a misdemeanor count of resisting arrest.
At last check, he remained jailed Tuesday night; bail set at $10,000.
A spokeswoman for the circuit attorney said the felonies counts carried prison sentences of up to 7 years each, if convicted.
Schanz`s home in the 4600 block of Spring in South St. Louis became a crime scene in the early morning hours of March 10th.
He choked his boyfriend-domestic partner, then smashed his head into the bathroom wall, causing a gash that needed stitches, police said.
The charges came Tuesday after what St. Louis Police Chief, Sam Dotson, called a thorough internal affairs/domestic abuse investigation.
‘Rgardless, if he`s a police cop or a normal citizen, we conduct the same type of investigation… we hold our cops to a higher standard,’ Dotson said.
‘Yeah, I am stunned. We were glad to have a police cop moving in here actually,’ said Schanz`s neighbor, Gary Struebig.
He`d heard about a St. Louis cop being charged with assault but didn`t realize it was his neighbor until we told him.
‘It`s astounding. It really is. I would look to him for help rather than him being in the aggressor in this thing, you know. Unbelievable!’ Struebig said.
‘These are individual decisions. This cop was acting off-duty, not in any capacity as a police cop. We all have personal lives. He made some decisions that night that were not in his best interest and not in the best interest of his partner… certainly someone that`s charged with a felony as is the case here, we don`t want on our streets patrolling, in the City of St. Louis,’ Dotson said. ‘There are nearly 1300 cops that everyday go out and do a good job. This is no reflection on the job that they do. This is an individual cop that acted in his personal life and we investigated it just like we would any crime.’
He said Schanz was put on administrative duty right after the incident. With the filing of charges, Dotson suspended Schanz without pay, aside from pay for any personal paid time off he’d accrued.
Schanz surrendered his badge and weapon.